List of governors of Illinois

Territory of Illinois

Illinois Territory was formed on March 1, 1809, from Indiana Territory.^[4] It had only two governors appointed by the president of the United States before it became a state, and only one ever took office.

Governors of Illinois Territory

No.	Governor		Term in office[a]	Appointed by
1		John Boyle (1774–1834)	March 7, 1809 – April 3, 1809 (resigned before taking office)[b]	James Madison
2		Ninian Edwards[c] (1775–1833) [9][10]	April 24, 1809[d] – October 6, 1818 (statehood)[e]	James Madison

State of Illinois

Illinois was admitted to the Union on December 3, 1818, consisting of the southern portion of Illinois Territory; the remainder was assigned to Michigan Territory.^[17]

The first Illinois Constitution, ratified in 1818, provided that a governor be elected every 4 years^[18] for a term starting on the first Monday in the December following an election.^[19] The constitution of 1848 moved the start of the term to the second Monday in January starting in 1849, thus shortening the term won in the 1844 election to 2 years.^[20] Governors were not allowed to succeed themselves^[19] until the 1870 constitution, which removed this limit.

The office of lieutenant governor was created in the first constitution,^[21] to exercise the power of governor if that office becomes vacant.^[22] The 1848 constitution changed this to say the power "devolves" upon the lieutenant governor in case of a vacancy.^[23] The current constitution of 1970 made it so that, in the event of a vacancy, the lieutenant becomes governor,^[24] and the governor and lieutenant governor are now elected on the same ticket.^[25] If the governor feels seriously impeded in performing their job, they can inform the secretary of state and the next in the line of succession, who becomes acting governor until the governor can resume office.^[24]

Governors of the State of Illinois

No.[f]	Governor			Term in office	Party	Election	Lt. Governor[g][h]
1			Shadrach Bond (1773–1832) [28][29]	October 6, 1818[30] – December 5, 1822 (term-limited)[i]	Democratic- Republican[32]	1818		Pierre Menard
2			Edward Coles (1786–1868) [33][34]	December 5, 1822[35] – December 6, 1826 (term-limited)[i]	Democratic- Republican[36]	1822		Adolphus Hubbard
3			Ninian Edwards (1775–1833) [10][9][37]	December 6, 1826[30] – December 6, 1830 (term-limited)[i]	Democratic- Republican[j]	1826		William Kinney
4			John Reynolds (1788–1865) [40][41]	December 6, 1830[30] – November 17, 1834 (resigned)[k]	Democratic- Republican[l]	1830		Zadok Casey[m] (resigned March 1, 1833)
								William Lee D. Ewing[m] (acting)
5			William Lee D. Ewing (1795–1846) [43][44]	November 17, 1834[45] – December 3, 1834 (successor took office)	Democratic[n]	Lieutenant governor acting	Vacant
6			Joseph Duncan (1794–1844) [47][48]	December 3, 1834[49] – December 7, 1838 (term-limited)[i]	Whig[42]	1834		Alexander M. Jenkins[m] (resigned December 9, 1836)
								William H. Davidson[m] (acting)
7			Thomas Carlin (1789–1852) [50][51]	December 7, 1838[52] – December 8, 1842 (term-limited)[i]	Democratic[53]	1838		Stinson Anderson
8			Thomas Ford (1800–1850) [54][55]	December 8, 1842[56] – December 9, 1846 (term-limited)[i]	Democratic[57]	1842		John Moore
9			Augustus C. French (1808–1864) [58][59]	December 9, 1846[60] – January 10, 1853 (term-limited)[o]	Democratic[62]	1846[p]		Joseph Wells
						1848		William McMurtry
10			Joel Aldrich Matteson (1808–1873) [63][64]	January 10, 1853[65] – January 12, 1857 (term-limited)[o]	Democratic[66]	1852		Gustav Koerner
11			William Henry Bissell (1811–1860) [67][68]	January 12, 1857[69] – March 18, 1860 (died in office)	Republican[70]	1856		John Wood
12			John Wood (1798–1880) [71][72]	March 18, 1860[73] – January 14, 1861 (successor took office)	Republican[36]	Lieutenant governor acting		Thomas Marshall[m] (acting)
13			Richard Yates (1815–1873) [74][75]	January 14, 1861[76] – January 16, 1865 (term-limited)[o]	Republican[77]	1860		Francis Hoffmann
14			Richard J. Oglesby (1824–1899) [78][79]	January 16, 1865[80] – January 11, 1869 (term-limited)[o]	Republican[36]	1864		William Bross
15			John M. Palmer (1817–1900) [81][82]	January 11, 1869[83] – January 13, 1873 (term-limited)[q]	Republican[36]	1868		John Dougherty
14			Richard J. Oglesby (1824–1899) [78][79]	January 13, 1873[84] – January 23, 1873 (resigned)[r]	Republican[36]	1872		John Lourie Beveridge
16			John Lourie Beveridge (1824–1910) [85][86]	January 23, 1873[87] – January 8, 1877 (successor took office)	Republican[36]	Lieutenant governor acting		John Early (acting) (term ended January 8, 1875)
								Archibald A. Glenn[m] (acting)
17			Shelby Moore Cullom (1829–1914) [88][89]	January 8, 1877[90] – February 6, 1883 (resigned)[s]	Republican[36]	1876		Andrew Shuman
						1880		John Marshall Hamilton
18			John Marshall Hamilton (1847–1905) [92][93]	February 6, 1883[91] – January 30, 1885 (successor took office)	Republican[36]	Lieutenant governor acting		William J. Campbell (acting)
14			Richard J. Oglesby (1824–1899) [78][79]	January 30, 1885[94] – January 14, 1889 (did not run)	Republican[36]	1884		John C. Smith
19			Joseph W. Fifer (1840–1938) [95][96]	January 14, 1889[97] – January 10, 1893 (lost election)	Republican[36]	1888		Lyman Beecher Ray
20			John Peter Altgeld (1847–1902) [98][99]	January 10, 1893[100] – January 11, 1897 (lost election)	Democratic[36]	1892		Joseph B. Gill
21			John Riley Tanner (1844–1901) [101][102]	January 11, 1897[103] – January 14, 1901 (did not run)[t]	Republican[36]	1896		William Northcott
22			Richard Yates Jr. (1860–1936) [104][105]	January 14, 1901[106] – January 9, 1905 (lost nomination)[104]	Republican[36]	1900
23			Charles S. Deneen (1863–1940) [107][108]	January 9, 1905[109] – February 3, 1913 (lost election)	Republican[36]	1904		Lawrence Yates Sherman
						1908		John G. Oglesby
24			Edward Fitzsimmons Dunne (1853–1937) [110][111]	February 3, 1913[112] – January 8, 1917 (lost election)	Democratic[36]	1912		Barratt O'Hara
25			Frank Orren Lowden (1861–1943) [113][114]	January 8, 1917[115] – January 10, 1921 (did not run)[113]	Republican[36]	1916		John G. Oglesby
26			Len Small (1862–1936) [116][117]	January 10, 1921[118] – January 14, 1929 (did not run)	Republican[36]	1920		Fred E. Sterling
						1924
27			Louis Lincoln Emmerson (1863–1941) [119][120]	January 14, 1929[121] – January 9, 1933 (did not run)[119]	Republican[36]	1928
28			Henry Horner (1878–1940) [122][123]	January 9, 1933[124] – October 6, 1940 (died in office)	Democratic[36]	1932		Thomas Donovan
						1936		John Henry Stelle
29			John Henry Stelle (1891–1962) [125][126]	October 6, 1940[127] – January 13, 1941 (successor took office)	Democratic[36]	Lieutenant governor acting	Vacant
30			Dwight H. Green (1897–1958) [128][129]	January 13, 1941[130] – January 10, 1949 (lost election)	Republican[36]	1940		Hugh W. Cross
						1944
31			Adlai Stevenson II (1900–1965) [131][132]	January 10, 1949[133] – January 12, 1953 (did not run)[u]	Democratic[36]	1948		Sherwood Dixon
32			William Stratton (1914–2001) [134][135]	January 12, 1953[136] – January 9, 1961 (lost election)	Republican[36]	1952		John William Chapman
						1956
33			Otto Kerner Jr. (1908–1976) [137][138]	January 9, 1961[139] – May 20, 1968 (resigned)[v]	Democratic[36]	1960		Samuel H. Shapiro
						1964
34			Samuel H. Shapiro (1907–1987) [141][142]	May 21, 1968[143] – January 13, 1969 (lost election)	Democratic[36]	Lieutenant governor acting	Vacant
35			Richard B. Ogilvie (1923–1988) [144][145]	January 13, 1969[146] – January 8, 1973 (lost election)	Republican[36]	1968		Paul Simon[m]
36			Dan Walker (1922–2015) [147][148]	January 8, 1973[149] – January 10, 1977 (lost nomination)[w]	Democratic[36]	1972		Neil Hartigan
37			James R. Thompson (1936–2020) [150][151]	January 10, 1977[152] – January 14, 1991 (did not run)	Republican[151]	1976[x]		Dave O'Neal (resigned July 31, 1981)
						1978
							Vacant
						1982		George Ryan
						1986
38			Jim Edgar (b. 1946) [154]	January 14, 1991[155] – January 11, 1999 (did not run)	Republican[154]	1990		Bob Kustra (resigned July 1, 1998)
						1994
							Vacant
39			George Ryan (b. 1934) [156]	January 11, 1999[157] – January 13, 2003 (did not run)	Republican[156]	1998		Corinne Wood
40			Rod Blagojevich (b. 1956) [158]	January 13, 2003[159] – January 29, 2009 (impeached and removed)[y]	Democratic[158]	2002		Pat Quinn
						2006
41			Pat Quinn (b. 1948) [161]	January 29, 2009[162] – January 12, 2015 (lost election)	Democratic[161]	Succeeded from lieutenant governor	Vacant
						2010		Sheila Simon
42			Bruce Rauner (b. 1956) [163]	January 12, 2015[164] – January 14, 2019 (lost election)	Republican[163]	2014		Evelyn Sanguinetti
43			J. B. Pritzker (b. 1965) [165]	January 14, 2019[166] – Incumbent[z]	Democratic[165]	2018		Juliana Stratton
						2022

• List of Illinois state legislatures
• List of commandants of the Illinois Country

General

Constitutions

Specific

• Office of the Governor of Illinois